From Junior Seau To Don Cornelius: The Black Suicide Stigma

It was recently reported that ex-NFL player Junior Seau and Soul Train legend Don Cornelius’ deaths were the result of suicide. While the cause of Seau’s suicide are unknown at this time, media reports have suggested that Mr. Cornelius took his own life due to severe pain as a result of chronic health illnesses.

One of the most prevalent views within the African-American community is that we do not intentionally kill ourselves. That suicide is something only white people or spiritually-weak people do. That suicide is a cop-out, and that to even consider it is a “punk move”. However, these apparent suicides and clinical research clearly indicate that African-Americans do commit suicide.

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The Sad (And Real) Facts On Black Suicide

According to the American Association of Suicidology, in 2005, 1,992 suicides were completed by African-Americans and that suicide was the third leading cause of death among African-American youth. The Centers for Disease Control reported that between 1999 and 2004, young African-American males had the highest rate of suicide. This latter finding is consistent with research that males are more likely to complete suicides whereas females are more likely to attempt suicide.

One reason for the difference is that men tend to choose more lethal means of death than women. But please do not take this to mean that African-American women do not commit suicide; the same 2005 data from the American Association of Suicidology reports of the 1,992 completed suicides among African-Americans that 371 of those deaths were by females. It is also important to note that, generally, there tends to be a underreporting of this behavior, so the numbers may be higher than those cited.